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Master List for Classes Instructor and Institution information
INSTRUCTOR AND INSTITUTION INFORMATION

ANITA JHALANI

Ph: (949)-412-3134
email: anita_jhalani@yahoo.com
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ANJANI AMBEGAOKAR
SUNDAR KALA KENDRA

Anjani Ambegaokar is a senior guru, choreographer, and renowned artist of Kathak dance who was awarded the National Endowment for The Arts National Heritage Fellowship for lifetime achievement in her field. Anjani teaches Kathak at UC Irvine as a visiting lecturer and was the lead choreographer for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's 2008 production of The Clay Cart. Anjani's dance school, Sundar Kala Kendra, has trained several hundred students over nearly 25 years and her professional touring company, Anjani Dance Theatre, has performed all over the USA, Canada, Europe and India, featuring the exceptionally trained dancers of Sundar Kala Kendra.

Ph: (909) 595-8934
email: anjania@aol.com
www.sundarkalakendra.org
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ANJANI GUPTA

Anjani Gupta is a practicing artist and digital graphic designer. With a degree in Fine Arts & Graphic Design, she has been teaching art for the last six years in Irvine. In addition, she has been creating custom art pieces, working with different media such as acrylics, oil and watercolors. She also uses traditional Indian techniques such as glass painting, nib painting, metal embossing and carving. Art is her passion which she enjoys sharing with the community. To fulfill this dream, her company VisnArt was formed: to convert vision into art.

Ph: (949) 735-2672
email: Gupta_anjie@yahoo.com
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ANU SRIRAM

The Bala Vihar classes familiarize children with stories from epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharatha and emphasize important values.

Ph: 949-733-3150 (Home)
email: anu_sriram2002@yahoo.com

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DEEPALI VORA
NITYA SHETRA SCHOOL OF DANCE

Guru Deepali Vora is the founder and director of Nitya Shetra Dance School of Southern California, one of the leading schools of Bharatanatyam. She arrived from Chennai, India and opened her school doors in 1997. Deepali has received rigorous training in the Thanjavur style of Bharatanatyam from Guru Madurai Muralidharan of the Nrityakshetra Dance School in Chennai, India. She started off as an assistant teacher to Guru Muralidaran before she moved here and started her own school. Deepali has won much acclaim for her performances in India and the United States. She has over 250 dance credits to her name. Her complex footwork mingled with her grace, expression, imagination, and creativity gives her the unique style that makes her one of the leading gurus in Southern California.

Ph: 310-525-0301
email: Nityashetra@yahoo.com
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GEETHA NIRAND
Kannada Kali

Ph: (949) 387-7277
email: gnirand@hotmail.com / vish.dixit@computer.org
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IQBAL SINGH GREWAL
Coordinator, Punjabi Community Center

Ph: (714) 282-8607
(714) 915-1366
email: grewal998@aol.com
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JYOTI PRAKASH MISTRY

Born in 1970, Jyoti Prakash started learning tabla at a very early age from his father Sri Nagendranath. He later studied with Pt. Abhijit Banerjee, one of the top ranking tabla players in India, who is a veteran student of the illustrious guru Pt. Gyan Prakash Ghosh. In addition to tabla, Jyoti Prakash has also learnt other Indian percussion instruments under the guidance of Sri Brojen Biswas, a well-known percussionist in India. He is a regular performing artist on All India Radio and Doordarshan (television). He currently teaches at Dhwani Academy Of Percussion, in San Diego, Irvine and Los Angeles, a prestigious institution founded by Pt. Abhijit Banerjee.

Ph: (714) 396-4083
email: jyotidhwani@yahoo.com
www.abhijitbanerjee.com
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KELLY GALINDO

Acting Instructor - Kelly holds two Masters Degrees in Theater/Performing Arts. She is a lifetime member of the Actors Studio. She has a great deal of experience teaching at all levels including the University level. She has taught acting and directing classes at various locations includine USC Film School and Chapman University. Kelly is a SAG and AFTRA actress and has appeared in various television shows such as “Sons of Anarchy,” "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant," "FlashForward," “ER,” “Mad TV,” “General Hospital,” “Chicago Hope” and more. On film, she has appeared in “From Dusk Til Dawn”, “America's Sweethearts”, “Angels of the City”, “The Bedtime Story” just to name a few. Kelly is currently a professor at Chapman University and teaches a variety of acting and directing classes with Method Acting being her area of expertise.

The Acting Auditioning course is a cross-section of the most popular and widely-held audition techniques and theories used in Hollywood. Through practical application, students will go through various types of auditions in effort to solidify the lessons learned in exercises. The goal is to experience the acting process first hand, in order to define and better understand the work needed to create a good audition performance and be able to book a job in Hollywood for Film, TV, Commercials, etc.

Ph: (949) 200-7618
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NAKUL DEV MAHAJAN
NDM DANCE STUDIOS

Nakul Dev Mahajan, "Hollywood's Favorite Bollywood Choreographer," is the Founder and Artistic Director of the premiere Bollywood dance company in the United States, NDM Bollywood Dance Productions & Studios in Los Angeles. With over 15 years of professional experience, Nakul has become a Bollywood ambassador, bringing the Art of Bollywood dancing to diverse audiences throughout the US and beyond. Nakul's unique dance style and choreography fuses a diverse repertoire including Indian classical styles, such as Kathak, Bharata Natyum, Bhangra, and Folk; and, western staples including Ballroom, Latin, Hip-hop, Modern, and Jazz. Nakul's work and vision to open the first Bollywood dance studio in the nation has created national press and entertainment attention, including features on ABC Nightline, Time Magazine, and The Los Angeles Times.

He has worked with a plethora of celebrities such as Natalie Portman, David Schwimmer, Chris Kattan, Steve Carrel, and Kal Penn, to name a few. His major Hollywood choreography credits include Passions, The Office, Character Fantasy, MTV, E! Entertainment, and Good Morning America. Nakul's choreography on So You Think You Can Dance and Superstars of Dance has garnered international interest and secured his role as Hollywood's Favorite Bollywood Choreographer.

Nakul has been graced with various awards and accolades, including being chosen as Mr. India California and over fifty prestigious dance awards in the South Asian community in the United States. Nakul also contributes his talents for various South Asian charities throughout the year for children in poverty and women in abusive conditions.

Ph: (562) 402-7761
email: ndmdancestudios@yahoo.com
www.ndmdance.com
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PREETI SINGH

Sahaja Meditation is a an international non profit organization that promotes the practice of meditation to help one overcome obstacles to their physical, mental, and emotional health. Unlike other forms of meditation, in which one's mental state is dependent on a focused thought, Sahaja Meditation helps one relax their mind by eliciting a state of 'thoughtless awareness'. This is meditation in its purest and most original form. By coming to Sahaja Meditation meetings, one would learn the ancient knowledge of the subtle system, a collection of energy centers and channels within the human body, and how to get into thoughless awareness on a regular basis. Introductory meetings are on Sundays from 4:00 to 5:00 PM at Ektaa Center. There is never a charge for learning Sahaja meditation from introductory to advance levels. Please register with Preeti Singh by phone or by email.

Ph: 949-413-6223
email: G4210@aol.com

www.sahajayoga.org
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RAMYA HARISHANKAR
ARPANA SCHOOL OF DANCE

Ramya Harishankar combines the elegance, grace and suppleness of the Vazhavoor School of Bharata Natyam with the distinctive ability to express all shades of emotion with sensitivity and intuition. She has imbibed these qualities under legendary gurus: the late Swamimalai K. Rajaratnam and Padma Bhushan Kalanidhi Narayanan.

In 1982, Harishankar established Arpana, which has grown to become a premier school of Bharata Natyam in California. In 2007, the 25th anniversary of the Arpana School of Dance was recognized with several citations and awards from the State Senate, County of Los Angeles and cities and organizations in Southern California, as well as the Helene Modjeska Cultural Legacy Award from Arts OC, the countywide arts organization in Orange County. The Arpana Dance Company (ADC), made up of the graduates of the school, has performed under her guidance in the US, Europe and India.

Harishankar has also received several grants from the California Arts Council, the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, the Fund for Folk Culture and the National Endowments for the Arts (NEA). As an artist on the Arts Teach and Arts Connect roster of the Orange County Performing Arts Center, she has been sharing her art with schoolchildren all over Southern California. Her solo career spanning more than three decades has taken her all over the world, performing extensively in India, S. E. Asia, the Far East, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, Canada and the US.

Ph: (949) 874-3662
email: ramya@danceramya.com
www.danceramya.com
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RASHMI FITTER

Rashmi Fitter has been teaching yoga for over 25 years. She has trained in many leading yoga institutes in India. She frequently travels back to India for further studies to refine her practice and work towards self-realization. Her yoga classes offer personal attention in traditional forms. She takes careful consideration in training her students in difficult postures with the use of props to avoid injuries. Handouts are provided to continue practice at home. Students learn correct postures, proper breathing, meditation, relaxation, cleansing methods and therapy. The benefits of yoga include improved posture, increased flexibility and stamina, general good health, reduced stress, and a feeling of satisfaction and confidence

Ph: (949) 551-4545
www.yogawithrashmi.com
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REETU PATEL

Move Bollywood Prodcutions Pioneering in Bollywood Musical Theatre. A powerful scene, a finely tuned emotion, or nothing at all precedes a Bollywood song, and that is the charisma of Bollywood dance. Item songs, love songs, folk songs, A Bollywood song is incomplete without the melodrama in a Bollywood Movie. Reetu Patel is here to offer Bollywood Musical Theatre, where we will dance, sing, laugh, and cry. Move Bollywood musical theatre will help each student live his & her Bollywood dream.Reetu is from Mumbai, India. Reetu has been dancing for 23 years, and acted on Indian television with some of the renowned production companies, Balaji Telefims, Shobhna Desai & Vipul Amritlal Shah productions, Rajesh Seth productions, Raj Kumar Santoshi Films, Satish Kaushik productions, Bharat Bala productions and many more. With Move Bollywood Musical Theatre, Reetu is here to offer her talent in acting and dancing.

Ph: 909-289-1203
email: ash7ree@yahoo.com
www.movebollywood.com
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SUR MUSIC & DANCE ACADEMY

As the name suggests, SUR Music & Dance Academy is an Academy & not just another classes. Currently, SUR offers courses on Vocal, Harmonium, Keyboard, Tabla, Sitar in the Music arena; and our popular Dance classes ('Mango Beats '). Also, the Academy is known to conduct Bala Gurukulam (earlier known as Bal Vihar) in various locations including Mandir. Our distinguished teachers are experienced and experts in their field. Currently serving Southern California, the Academy has a vision to open centers across the United States to benefit music & dance enthusiasts and also explorers of Indian culture & heritage. For details, enrollment & to apply for teaching any form of music, dance & other arts please contact

VENKATESH SANKARAN is a Composer, Singer, Musician, Teacher and Co-Founder of SUR Music & Dance Academy. Venkatesh is proficient in Vocal and playing few instruments including the Harmonium & Keyboard. Other than teaching Music in Southern California, he is actively involved in organizing various shows, events & cultural programs to promote Indian Arts in the USA. Venkatesh also personally coaches participants of popular music shows like Zee TV's Sa Re Ga Ma Pa or college/ university competitions. Though he wears various hats, composing is his passion. Composing light & semi-classical music, bhajans & background scores are his forte. Though he composes all his scores at his home studio, Venkatesh has a team of experienced arranger & musicians in the recording studio in Pune, India.

RUCHI LAMBA is a top-rated Bollywood dance instructor from Australia who started learning Kathak at the age of four from Premlal Ghodse in Nagpur, and Uma Dogra in Mumbai. At the age of eleven, her parents moved to Australia where she was raised and educated. She continued her Kathak education with Shakuntala Devi in Sydney, while Paramita Ghosh trained her in Odissi. Raghavan Nair of Bharatiya Kala Kendra in New Delhi taught her Kuchipudi and she pursued Jazz and Hip-Hop at the Sydney Dance Academy in Australia. In California, she has continued her passion for Kathak with Anjani Ambegaonkar.

Ruchi has performed at more than 100 venues all over the world including the Sydney Opera House in Australia and Webley Stadium in London. She was principal dancer at Kalabharati School of Dance in Sydney, Australia and chief soloist with Sydney's Indian Dance Center. She has also won numerous dance awards for her school and university. Her dance group in Australia won first place in the Australian Dance Championships three years in a row. She was also awarded Best Dancer award for her fusion dance work by the Indian Arts and Culture Association in London.

Ruchi has combined her unique experience and training in Kathak, Odissi, Kuchipudi, Jazz and Hip-Hop to create an eye-catching and mind-blowing choreographic style which she calls 'Mango Beats' and teaches the same at SUR MUSIC & DANCE ACADEMY

For details & enrollment:
Contact Ruchi directly at
Ph: (714) 352 - 5445/ (949) 466 - 5220
email: Ruchi.mangobeats@surmusicacademy.com
OR
SUR MUSIC & DANCE ACADEMY
Ph: (714) 280 - 4519
email: info@surmusicacademy.com
www.surmusicacademy.com

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